Hybrid caravan buying guide

The hybrid camper or caravan is a relatively new phenomenon in the RV industry. While you could track it back to likes of the original Tvan around 20 years ago, it's only really been in the last five years or so that the hybrid caravan concept has taken off, with a huge number of RV manufacturers now offering a hybrid in their range.

What is a hybrid?

A hybrid camper is in essence a trailerable RV that offers some notion of the compactness and lightness of a traditional camper trailer with the conveniences and comforts of a caravan, and almost always includes some off-road toughness in the design.

However, this style of camper is very much open to interpretation by the manufacturer marketing it. Some look suspiciously like a small off-road pop-top caravan than a camper, while others have a very camper trailer look to them, with a wind-up hard roof but canvas walls, etc. Others take the form of a teardrop camper, albeit with off-road pretensions.

So the catch-all term ‘hybrid camper’ is a loose one. About all one can say is a tandem-axle 26-foot, 3500kg caravan is not a hybrid, and neither is a soft-floor camper trailer.

The hybrid advantages

The main advantages of a hybrid camper is that they can offer the best of both worlds. They're not as heavy or big as a caravan to tow, so they're easier to negotiate in off-road conditions.

A hybrid with pop-top roof can be more aerodynamic than a caravan, so the tow vehicle burns less fuel on transport stages. A hybrid should also have a quicker set-up/pack-up time than a camper trailer, although this isn't always the case.

Not always family friendly

While there are a few examples, in general a family-friendly camper doesn’t usually squeeze into the hybrid definition.

Most hybrids are typically only designed for two people to sleep in comfortably, although some offer small hammocks, dinette 'bunks' or slide-out beds for the kids. There are some clever exceptions to this rule, like Condamine Camper that has a slide-out rear room that can be used as a second bedroom.

Most hybrid campers will feature an external slide-out kitchen, although for basic cooking inside when it’s wet and cold, some offer a small, basic internal kitchen.

Whatever luxuries and convenience features the hybrid offers, it usually doesn't offer much internal space to move around in. A bed, a few cupboards and perhaps a small fridge (although the fridge is often a portable unit on an external slide-out) is standard on many hybrids.

Aside from nooks and crannies for smaller items and perhaps a small cupboard or two, storage is often relegated to external lockers or A-frame tool boxes. You won’t be taking as much gear as you would in a larger caravan.

Being off-road oriented, many hybrid campers come with an off-road coupling, off-road tyres and underbody protection, not to mention independent coil-spring or airbag suspension. Having said that, there's an argument that says a well-designed beam-axle leaf-spring trailer suspension is more stable under tow than a poor independent set-up, but we won’t get into that!

Hybrids are not always cheap

While many imported (Chinese) brands specialise in hybrid campers, most of the Australian-built versions are usually pitched as an upmarket option. Realistically, you'll need to spend at least $40,000, and often nearly double that, for a well-equipped and well-built hybrid camper.

Like anything, a hybrid camper will always be a compromise. The main thing you have to decide on is the size and weight you'll be happy with, and if that size will work with where you plan to both park and tow the camper – not to mention whether your vehicle has the capacity to actually tow it.

Do you even need a hybrid?

If you're only planning to drive the main highways with the occasional excursion down a well-formed dirt road, then you might want to reconsider buying a hybrid.

You might be better served by a small pop-top, road-going caravan. It will probably be more affordable to buy and cheaper and easier to tow.

Where will you take your hybrid?

If you're planning to take a hybrid onto soft sand or on tight bush tracks, you should opt for a smaller, lighter hybrid with fewer frills than a bigger, heavier one.

Much more than 1000kg of trailer weight can become a real challenge to tow in slippery, soft terrain. A hybrid that runs in the same tracks as the tow vehicle, and is no wider and not much taller than the vehicle in front, is also simpler to tow in tougher conditions.

You may lose out on interior space and creature comforts, but you’ll have less risk of damaging the camper on, for example, low branches over a track, or getting hopelessly bogged in fluffy sand.

Obviously a pop-top design will give you the space you need inside at camp while being more compact out on the tracks, but some hybrids have a lower packed-down profile than others. It’s worth considering this when trying to match the camper to the places you want to go.

If you’re more likely to tow a hybrid on relatively well-formed, open Outback tracks such as the Oodnadatta Track, you'll be less likely to strike problems with a larger, heavier hybrid. Mind you, even these tracks can be hard to negotiate at the wrong time, such as after rain, although tracks are often closed in muddy conditions.

Tow vehicle issues

Many of us have larger 4WDs capable of towing a heavy van – making towing a hybrid a doddle. But one advantage of having a hybrid is that they're relatively light to begin with and so don’t always require a bulky 4WD for towing.

If you're looking at hybrids and don’t have a big, 3500kg-capable 4WD, you'll need to check your vehicle's tow ratings. Check that both the maximum towing capacity and the maximum towball download exceed the camper’s maximum allowed weight (Aggregate Trailer Mass, or ATM) and the camper’s maximum towball download.

It's also worth checking your tow vehicle’s Gross Combined Mass (GCM), or the maximum allowable weight of the vehicle and trailer combination. If your towing rig's combined weight exceeds the GCM, you risk being fined or not being covered by insurance if you're weight-checked by police or you're involved in an accident.